Street View: Darden's underlying trends strengthen as headwinds ease

Darden Restaurants

25/09/2026 15:06

** Darden Restaurants DRI.N on Thursday maintained its annual forecasts after narrowly missing first-quarter estimates, hurt by weakness at Italian casual-dining chain Olive Garden
** Median PT of 30 brokerages covering the stock is $236, according to data compiled by LSEG 

HEADWINDS EASE; TRAFFIC IMPROVES
** J.P. Morgan ("neutral", PT: $225) says Darden's sales trends improved through the quarter and into September, with management's cautious outlook leaving room for upside if momentum at Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse continues
** Jefferies ("hold", PT: $200) says improving demand trends, easing headwinds and strong value offerings at Olive Garden support confidence in co's outlook despite a challenging consumer backdrop
** TD Cowen ("hold", PT: $215) says weakness at Olive Garden was largely tied to temporary factors such as the World Cup and cyclospora-related concerns, while LongHorn's traffic-driven growth remains intact
** BTIG ("buy", PT: $235) says co continues to take market share by offering better value than competitors, with strength at its steakhouse chain and improving trends at its Italian chain supporting further gains

 (Reporting by Shania S Thomas in Bengaluru)
 ((shanias.thomas@thomsonreuters.com))